Keto math = not fun


(Autumn) #1

I’ve been reading up on Keto and ready to start planning food/menus/etc so I can actually start asap. I know how many carbs/fats/proteins I need to eat in a day - that was the easy part. But when I stop to think of how to track everything, I’m absolutely paralised with “how in the h*** do I do this?!”, and “I do not have 3 hours every day to do the math”. I’m so discouraged (ALREADY) when I think about a recipe and figuring out how much of that recipe I’m going to eat, how much FCP are in every gram of every ingredient and if I’m eating X amount of grams of that recipe than I’m eating X amount of grams of Proteins, X amount of grams of Fats, X amount of grams of Carbs…on and on and on and on. I want to cry because I already feel so discouraged and I’ve not even technically started.

I guess what I need to know is, what is an easy way to track all of the FCP of every gram of every ingredient in every recipe if I’m making meals for more than one person - and if I don’t have a lot of time during the day to do all the math? I have a Keto tracker app but I was on my phone today for no joke, 35 minutes, just figuring out the 3 items I had for breakfast. That’s 35 minutes for one meal, for one person for one day.

I don’t know. I just need help. I don’t know how to do this the easy way so I can get every gram of every ingredient of every meal tracked. Are there secrets? Do I need to join a society and learn a handshake? That would be easier.

Help.

Please and thank you.


(Rob) #2

I can’t say I’ve ever spent 35 minutes to record breakfast or any meal (even when I have to create a whole recipe) but I have certainly become much quicker at inputting since I started.
I was lucky that I was an experienced food logger since CICO days so it was not an additional stress to move to keto from that perspective. What I would say is…

  1. Try different apps - I have tried the main ones and find LoseIt the easiest while having sufficient functionality (less than MFP or Cronometer but much easier to use).
  2. It should get better over time, especially if you eat similar things since most apps do have a “my foods” type list of things that you’ve eaten before so you don’t have to dig deep to find things and they pop up after a couple of letters typed (even with 3.5yrs of foods in my list)
  3. You can drop tracking altogether and go “Lazy Keto” once you are happy that you know your foods and don’t stray often from things and portions you’ve had before. Many people do that after a couple of months or so.

I never would do #3 but I only spend about 2-3 minutes a day logging my food and I don’t think I’m an exceptional tracker :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:


(Autumn) #3

Hmm, Lose It. What an interesting - and ironic - time to get that app suggestion, cause I’m about to lose it. lol Thanks for the reco. I’ll have a look at the app and see how I go.


(Candy Lind) #4

You don’t have to make this hard at first. Especially if you have a lot to lose, there is a ton of wiggle room. Just do this: Eat the foods you’re fixing for everyone (keto-friendly, obviously), and add fat to your helping. Moderate protein. If you’re having a veg or salad, be sure to add plenty of fat to that, too. Eat until you are satisfied. That is really all you have to do.

When you have a chance, just for grins and jollies, log in a meal (doesn’t have to be perfect!) and see what it says you ate for carbs. Are there any there you didn’t anticipate? Make it a learning experience, not a chore.

Let this be enough to get you started. It really doesn’t have to be difficult! Once your weight loss starts slowing down, THEN you can start digging in to how things work and where you might be able to change something to kick your body in the bootie and drop some more.

Remember, often your body will decide there is other healing that needs to go on before you lose any weight. Just KCKO - the magic will happen!


(Autumn) #5

Thank you for the recommendation. I’m a massive control freak, (don’t tell my husband that I admitted to that, lol), so I may struggle blindly eating and not knowing the exact counts down to the gram, but you’re right. Best to start small and work up to the details. I guess the most important thing is to just start. Thanks again.


(Candy Lind) #6

And take in LOTS of salt. 4-5 grams per day (salt everything and add salt to your drinking water in small amounts)! I forgot that.


#7

I vote for Cronometer. I like that it gives you micronutrients and it is very easy to use. I used Lose it or one of the other apps previously and this is easier and gives more information.

I do not really use it much, maybe once every couple of months. I prefer lazy keto. I feel that food should fit within your day not be the focus of your day (which is my issue with weight watchers). Since I am in this for the long haul I cannot micromanage my diet. Especially as calories are not relevant on this diet, spiking insulin is


(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #8

Seriously, I vote for not counting at all, also known as “lazy keto.” I just keep my carbohydrate as low as I can, because otherwise I’ll start bingeing, and I don’t worry about the protein amount (it might be a little higher than recommended, but it’s beginning to appear that there’s quite a bit of wiggle room there), and eat fat to satiety. I am compulsive about many things, but weighing food and counting calories, not so much. If I’m being honest, in fact, I should probably say that I’m compulsive about not counting and weighing. If I had to do it to be keto, then I couldn’t be keto.

So the moral of the story is, count if you absolutely have to, but know that you don’t have to. There are no rules, except Keep Calm and Keto On! :bacon:


(Bacon for the Win) #9

Another vote for this. Keep portions reasonably sized, eat real foods, minimize carbs, and drill down when and if you have to further down the road.


(Wendy) #10

I’m all for not tracking. I’ve always been lazy keto. I never did weight watchers or really any calories counting so I don’t have that mind set.
I just learned about it, ate low carb foods like veggies and avoided things I read were not healthy or helpful on the ketogenic diet.
I think I would burn out if I had to think so much about the macros.
You know don’t eat sugars, grains, low fat stuff, eat healthy sources of fat not over processed ones like vegetable oils. Enjoy avocadoes, bacon, pork, steak, chicken with skin and add butter.
I indulge in full fat greek yogurt with a few berries many days too.
This is how I keto. :slight_smile: And listen to 2 keto Dudes podcasts.
Try not to stress because stress lowers your metabolism. KCKO!


(Not needed) #11

MyFitnessPal hands down. You can make your own “foods,” for example if you have your own combination of things you use to make BPC you can do the math once and store it. I did it with a few things including the mayo I make.

I get the people that say don’t count, but I think starting out counting is good. It gives you a realistic idea of amounts and portions and a good visual reminder of carbs. Eventually though you’ll get the gist, then you’ll feel comfortable going the “no count” route.

Another thing, don’t think about this diet in conventional flawed wisdom of having to count calories, that in actuality is not how the body works. Think about it in terms of “what am I going to eat that will make me excrete insulin.”


(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #12

That is excellent advice. Love it!


(Autumn) #13

I’ll struggle with this because I do not like salt. But I can maybe work with a bit of Meldon Sea Salt or something similar. Thanks! :slight_smile:


(Candy Lind) #14

You’ll possibly end up craving salt after a while on keto. In the meantime, you can buy some salt tablets and take them instead/in addition to dietary salt.


(Autumn) #15

I totally agree with you. I need something that’s going to be easier to maintain long term, something more natural. Counting Fats Carbs Proteins, etc is not realistic long term. But I have already cut out major carbs - pasta, rice, potatoes, bread, and most obvious sugars (cakes, etc, but I was never a sugar person anyway) and that didn’t seem to make a difference, which is a whole other can of worms. So I thought maybe I need to pay more attention to the details, although the details aren’t realistic. Thanks for the advice. :slight_smile:


(Autumn) #16

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!! The more I read “lazy keto” the more I realise that what I was already doing was almost enough. Just need to eat more, which has always been my issue - one meal a day - and watch a bit more those hidden carbs. (ie. No more banana strawberry smoothies). :slight_smile:


(Autumn) #17

I had My Fitness Pal, but deleted it. Maybe I’ll have a second look at it. I think I’m going to find something half way between full blown obsessed counting, and “lazy keto”. I’m not 100% comfortable with each, but maybe just get more of an understanding of the foods that don’t obviously have carbs and 86 those from my diet. ie. bananas, other fruits, etc. Thank you for the advice. It’s very much appreciated. :slight_smile:


(Autumn) #18

What does the salt do?


(Wendy) #19

It keeps you alive. When I went keto I noticed I wanted more salt on my meats. I then learned that keto causes you to lose more salt as you lose water weight.
You might like to read The Salt Fix. I believe their is a 2 Keto Dudes episode with the author.
I eat salt when I fast and it helps my BP and my hunger if I’m feeling a little hungry.


(Candy Lind) #20

Salt is basically the CEO of electrolytes - it controls a lot of what goes on with use of magnesium, potassium, and several other elements and if/when they are stored in the cells for later use. Because it’s water-soluble, you have to ingest plenty because a lot gets flushed out.